Roundup: Ventura stabbing followed by rollover crash, more local news
Here's a roundup of recent incidents and announcements from Ventura County agencies:
Stabbing victim causes rollover crash
VENTURA — Authorities in Ventura are investigating a stabbing early Saturday that caused victims further injury when they were involved in a rollover crash while trying to get to a hospital.
Police initially responded to the traffic accident at a fast food restaurant around 2:13 a.m., but the victims had been stabbed earlier at another location.
The stabbings took place along Ventura's beachfront promenade near Paseo de Playa, said Ventura Police Department Cmdr. Mike Brown. The short street lined by parking spaces extends south from Harbor Boulevard to the popular promenade walkway.
Authorities learned the three victims, all men, had been confronted in the area by two male suspects in their 20s. A verbal argument took place. One of the suspects pulled out a knife and stabbed two of the three victims multiple times, according to police.
While the victims were trying to drive to the hospital, the driver — who had been stabbed — lost consciousness from his injuries, authorities said. The vehicle was a Chevrolet Tahoe or similar style SUV, Brown said.
The SUV struck a curb and overturned outside a Jack in the Box along Thompson Boulevard near Seaward Avenue.
The two victims with stab wounds were taken to the hospital in critical but stable condition.
No additional details about the victims, including their ages and cities of residence, were immediately available.
As of 6:30 p.m. Saturday, no arrests had been made.
The incident remains under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call Detective Sgt. Bill Dolan at 805-339-4444.
-- This item will be updated when more details are available.
Crews respond to brush, apartment fires
VENTURA COUNTY — Firefighters tackled a small brush fire along Highway 101 north of Ventura Friday and an apartment fire in Oak Park on Saturday.
Friday's blaze broke out in the late afternoon in Padre Juan Canyon, located in a hilly area along Highway 101. Crews kept the blaze to about a quarter of an acre, the Ventura County Fire Department reported.
On Saturday morning, firefighters saw heavy smoke coming from an apartment building in the 5800 block of Hickory Drive in Oak Park, east of Thousand Oaks. The fire was reported shortly after 10:15 a.m. on the second floor of a two-story unit in a complex on the north side of Kanan Drive.
Everyone reportedly made it out of the unit safely before firefighters extinguished the blaze, officials said. The cause was under investigation.
Ventura woman sentenced in child trafficking case
VENTURA — A 21-year-old Ventura woman was sentenced to more than six years in prison this week in a human trafficking case involving a minor.
Alessandra Huber-Perez had pleaded guilty in August to human trafficking of a minor, false imprisonment and furnishing a controlled substance to a minor, according to the Ventura County District Attorney's Office.
Huber-Perez had been contacted by law enforcement officers several times in 2021 while with the underage victim, prosecutors said. In May last year, she threatened the girl with a knife and prevented her from leaving a Ventura residence.
In June 2021, Huber-Perez and the victim were again together when Ventura Police Department officers conducted a traffic stop. A search of their phones showed Huber-Perez had arranged commercial sex acts involving the minor, prosecutors said.
DA investigators who also worked on the case, which included analysis of cell phone records, found Huber-Perez had been trafficking the minor, the agency said.
Deputy DA Rikole Kelly prosecuted the case.
Huber-Perez was sentenced in Ventura County Superior Court to 6 years, 4 months in state prison on Tuesday by Judge Bruce Young. She will also have to register as a sex offender.
Sheriff's office gets $492k road safety grant
VENTURA COUNTY — Some $492,000 in grant funds will help Ventura County Sheriff's officials boost traffic safety measures for the next year.
The money, from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, will help pay for targeted enforcement operations, DUI checkpoints, officer training and community presentations.
"Our intent is to stop the most unlawful and dangerous behaviors that put people at risk and create an environment where everyone feels safe traveling," Capt. Shane Matthews said in a release.
The grant program will run through September 2023.
-- Items may be updated.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Roundup: Stabbing followed by rollover crash in Ventura, more news
